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The Next Alfa Romeo MiTo Could Be A Crossover

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Here in the United States, we don’t pay much heed to the tiny, front-wheel-drive Alfa Romeo MiTo. Its subcompact footprint makes it ill-suited to American roads and driver sensibilities, which is part of the reason why it isn’t sold here. What’s more, at the Geneva Motor Show, FCA Head of US Sales Reid Bigland – who until very recently served as Head of Alfa Romeo and Maserati globally – said that the MiTo just isn’t at the “same level” as products like the Giulia sedan, Stelvio crossover, and 4C sportscar. Those newer designs “define” the new Alfa Romeo, he said, according to Auto Express.

So the Alfa Romeo MiTo isn’t beguiling enough that the average American would covet it from afar, either.

Yet the Alfa Romeo MiTo could become a whole lot more relevant to American buyers in the next few years, as there’s been some indication that the nameplate could come to adorn a crossover utility vehicle after the current MiTo is nixed from the European market. Were it reborn as a crossover, we can almost guarantee it would find its way to North America’s shores.

“If there is a MiTo [in the future] I don’t think it will be in the [current] shape,” Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne said at the Geneva Motor Show. “The market has shrunk – two-door B segment hatchbacks is a very shrinking market.”

But the B-segment’s loss is the SUV segment’s gain, and Alfa Romeo is eager to expand its offerings in the crossover space beyond the Stelvio as the brand focuses “less on Europe, more on the entire world,” Reid Bigland says. More specifically, that means North America and Asia. He said that Alfa Romeo is increasing its focus on SUVs and crossovers, and buyers “shouldn’t be surprised to see something from Alfa Romeo in the largest markets,” referring (presumably) to Alfa Romeo’s pending large crossover based on the Maserati Levante platform.

Flanking the Stelvio with a compact third crossover model, possibly called the “Alfa Romeo MiTo”, doesn’t seem too far-fetched, does it?